A dispensing package for plastic bags and the like

ABSTRACT

A dispenser box for polyethylene bags, tissues, or other such types of items. The dispenser consists of a triangular box with a cutout for dispensing along both sides of its top edge. Inside the box is a support, preferably made of corrugated cardboard and shaped in the form of a &#39;&#39;&#39;&#39;T,&#39;&#39;&#39;&#39; positioned in an inverted manner inside of the box. The bags are draped about the bridge of the support and exposed through the cutout of the dispenser. The natural springiness of the corrugated cardboard has a tendency to force the bridge of the support upwards, pushing the bags against the dispenser opening. If necessary, rubber bands or other such similar elastic material can be placed along the bottom legs of the support to provide extra resiliency.

United States' Patent [72] Inventor Hersh Taub Brooklyn, N.Y. [211 App]. No. 1,702 [22] Filed Jan. 9, 1970 [45] Patented Nov. 30, 1971 [73] Assignee Instrument Systems Corporation New York, N.Y.

[54) DISPENSING PACKAGE FOR PLASTIC BAGS AND THE LIKE I Claim, 5 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S. C1 221/59, 221/63 [51] Int. Cl. B65h 1/08 [50] Fieldotseareh 221/63,55, 33, 45, 46, 58, 59; 229/17, 22, 2

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,482,734 12/1969 Mierson 221/63 llu'vaouoo Primary Examiner-Stanley l-l. Tollberg Auorney- Meyer A. Gross ABSTRACT: A dispenser box for polyethylene bags, tissues, or other such types of items. The dispenser consists of a triangular box with a cutout for dispensing along both sides of its top edge. lnside the box is a support, preferably made of corrugated cardboard and shaped in the form of a T," positioned in an inverted manner inside of the box. The bags are draped about the bridge of the support and exposed through the cutout of the dispenser. The natural springiness of the corrugated cardboard has a tendency to force the bridge of the support upwards, pushing the bags against the dispenser opening. If necessary, rubber bands or other such similar elastic material can be placed along the bottom legs of the support to provide extra resiliency.

A DISPENSING PACKAGE FOR PLASTIC BAGS AND THE LIKE The present invention relates to dispensing constructions, and more particularly to dispensers for polyethylene bags.

Dispensing constructions are known in the industry. The types of constructions vary considerably in their complexity from the well-known tissue type of dispenser simply consisting of a rectangular box with the perforated opening in the top, to rather involved rigid containers having spring-operated members to force materials through openings.

Among the principal objects of the present invention is to provide a dispenser construction which will continuously and conveniently allow an easy access into the interior to remove bags, even when the supply of bags is almost exhausted.

Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide a construction which will protect the contents thereof.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a construction which may be utilized for a variable number of lengths of bags.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a dispenser construction which is easy to ship, store, and display.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a construction which has a low center of gravity and is extremely stable to minimize toppling when a bag is removed.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a construction which can be manufactured and produced on a relatively inexpensive basis, from inexpensive materials, and yet will be durable to a high degree in use.

Basically, the dispenser construction of the present invention consists of a box which may be made from any type of chipboard or plastic materials, having a generally triangular configuration with a perforated cutout along the upper edges of the sidewalls near the apex of the box, to form a dispenser opening. The bottom wall of the box may be a single piece constructionfhave a single flap or consist of a plurality of flaps. It may be disposed of after the inside supply is exhausted or may be designed for continuous opening and sealing to admit new supplies of bags to be dispensed. Located within the box is a support in the form of an inverted T." The support is made of resilient material, such as corrugated cardboard. The natural springiness of this material has a tendency to cause the bridge of the support to force a supply of bags draped over the upstanding leg of the T," forcing the bags against the dispenser opening and allowing easy access to the bags, even though the supply of bags may be completely exhausted. Because of the additional volume located around the lower legs of the inverted T," a supply of variable length bags may be dispensed from the same container (within limits). If the bags or material to be dispensed become too heavy and begin to cause the support to lose its resiliency, elastic materials such as rubber bands may be stretched across the bottom legs to provide additional resiliency.

The above description and objects of the present invention will become apparent from a reading of the following description, taken with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. I is a perspective exploded view of a dispenser construction in accordance with the present invention showing the box with the bottom flaps in open extended position and the configuration of the support just prior to its placement within the box;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the box containing a supply of bags;

FIG. 3 is an inverted perspective view of the support illustrating the use of resilient baNds to assist in maintaining the resiliency thereof;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 4-4 of FIG. 2 illustrating the positioning of a supply of bags within the box; and

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 2 illustrating the removal of a bag from the box.

Turning to the drawings, and in particular to FIG. I, there is shown a dispenser construction 10 which broadly comprises a box 12 and a support member 14.

More specifically, the box may be constructed of chip board, corrugated cardboard, plastic, or any such similar material which may be inexpensively fabricated and yet will prove to be wear-resistant in use. The box is generally triangular in cross-sectional shape, and preferably is in the form of an equilateral triangle, although it may be also in the shape of a right triangle. In its preferred embodiment the box is defined by end walls 16, right and left sidewalls 18, 20 and a bottom wall 22 composed of bottom end fiaps 24 and bottom right and left side flaps 26, 28. The flaps may be detachably secured to each other by self-adhering adhesives to allow continuous refilling of the interior of the box as the supply of bags are used up. The bottom may be a single piece or a single fiap construction and may be so inexpensive as to allow disposal thereof after use.

A cutout 30, defining the dispenser opening is located in the upper portions of the sidewalls 18, 20 terminating where they meet at their common apex 32. The cutout may be circle, oval, triangular, etc. or any other shape which will serve the purpose. The preferred cutout is defined by right and longitudinal edges 34, 36 and end edges 38, 40.

The support member 14 is preferably constructed of corrugated cardboard, but it can also be made of any similar-type materials having a natural springiness or resiliency.

The shape of the support member is that of an inverted T" when placed within the box. The support comprises right and left bottom legs 42, 44 having upper surfaces 44, 46, :48 respectively. The bottom legs are in parallel alignment to each other and have right and left support legs 50, 52 extending up wardly therefrom, also in parallel alignment and having outer surfaces 54, 56 respectively. The legs 50, 52 are joined across a bridge 58 which is simply bent over a portion of the material forming the support member and blends into the legs 50, 52 and its outer surface 60 is contiguous with the surfaces 54, 56.

Slots 62, 64 may be located along the edges of the bottom legs 42, 44 and resilient bands, such as rubber bands 65, may be placed therein in order to provide additional resiliency for the support member should heavier than usual loads be placed upon it.

Utilization of the invention is self-evident. A supply of bags 66 are placed upon the T" support. It should be noted that the length of the bags can be varied within limits. The only limiting factor being that the volume between the walls 18, 20 and the bottom wall 22 be sufficient to accommodate the excess lengths. A portion of the bags will rest upon the support bridge 58 and be pushed upwardly and into exposure from the outside through the cutout 30. After the bags and the support T have been placed into the interior of the box the bottom end and side flaps 24, 26, 28 are closed to make a secure package. The bags may then be removed one at a time by use of the fingers as illustrated in FIG. 5, from the package. The natural resiliency and springiness inherent within the support member 14 will cause the exposed portions of the bags to be constantly pushed against the edges of the cutout 30.

The box 12 may be formed from a single blank piece of material with the cutout 30 being formed by perforations along that portion of the cutout material. Thus, when the unit is shipped, the cutout 30 will be completely enclosed, and the cutout may be removed at the point of usage.

The triangular shape of the box allows very efficient packing, storage and shipment, and yet allows a low center of gravity in a large space to eliminate the problem of toppling or tipping of the box when a bag is removed from the interior.

As previously pointed out, the construction embodied by the present invention encompasses the use of other materials besides polyethylene bags, and these may be ordinary paper bags, waxed paper bags, tissues, etc. The heavier items may require the use of elastic bands across the bottom legs of the T" support to provide the necessary resiliency to force the items into contact with the edges of the cutout and exposure therethrough.

it should be recognized that the support may be an integral part of the box. In such a modification the side flap 26 is elongated so that the member 14 may be made directly therefrom, the flap 26 becoming the leg 42. Furthermore, the flap 28 is of sufficient width to adequately cover enough of the bottom to protect the support. U-shaped cutouts can be made in the leg 42 to anchor the rubber bands.

The terms and expressions which have been employed here are used as terms of description and not of limitation and there is no intention, in the use of such terms and expressions, of excluding equivalence of the features shown and described or portions thereof, it being recognized that various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention claimed.

What is claimed is:

1. An improved dispenser construction to facilitate continuous and singular dispensing of flexible, narrow width items comprising:

a. a box to receive the items, the box being triangular in cross-sectional configuration, the sidewalls thereof defining an apex extending upwardly, and having edges defining a cutout proximate to the apex allowing egress from :1. the member comprising parallel aligned left and right bot- 3. a plurality of slots in the bottom legs, resilient bands I tom legs, the member being bent at right angles to form upstanding left and right side legs standing parallel and adjacent to each other, the side legs being joined by the bridge, the bridge having an upper surface against which the dispenser items are supported; and

stretched across the bottom of said bottom legs and received in said slots to provide extra support and resiliency to the member. 

1. An improved dispenser construction to facilitate continuous and singular dispensing of flexible, narrow width items comprising: a. a box to receive the items, the box being triangular in cross-sectional configuration, the sidewalls thereof defining an apex extending upwardly, and having edges defining a cutout proximate to the apex allowing egress from the box; b. a support member sized to be received in the interior of the box, the member made of a material having resiliency and springiness, the member having a bridge to support a portion of the items to be dispensed, the bridge urging the portion into contact with the walls of the box adjacent the edges of the cutout, to allow the portion to be easily grasped for removal from the interior of the box; c. the member being ''''T'''' shaped and being placed within the box in an inverted position; d. the member comprising parallel aligned left and right bottom legs, the member being bent at right angles to form upstanding left and right side legs standing parallel and adjacent to each other, the side legs being joined by the bridge, the bridge having an upper surface against which the dispenser items are supported; and
 3. a plurality of slots in the bottom legs, resilient bands stretched across the bottom of said bottom legs and received in said slots to provide extra support and resiliency to the member.
 3. a plurality of slots in the bottom legs, resilient bands stretched across the bottom of said bottom legs and received in said slots to provide extra support and resiliency to the member. 